Raoul Moat Pc: I still see face of killer in my world of darkness

The policeman shot and blinded by gunman
Raoul Moat has said he is haunted by the face of the killer lying in his bed when he goes to sleep at night.

Pc David Rathband, the policeman shot by gunman Raoul Moat

Pc David Rathband , a married dad of two, was left blind in both eyes after the attack.

The police officer from Northumbria was shot in the face and chest as he sat in his stationary patrol car on the A1/A69 roundabout in East Denton, Newcastle, in July.

Earlier, Moat had shot his ex-girlfriend, Samantha Stobbart , and her new partner, Chris Brown , seriously injuring her and killing him.

A stand-off lasting six hours between Moat and the police ended with the 37-year-old shooting himself in the head.

In an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live today Pc Rathband admitted he still sees the face of Moat in his mind, adding: ‘I do think about him when I go to bed.’

The officer said: ‘I go to bed at night and sometimes look to my left and his face is lying next to me on the pillow.

‘It’s a face that shows him in death, not in life, which is horrific.’

He said: ‘Before this happened, I had no perception of what it is like to be visually impaired or blind.

‘From that dreadful evening, I have been thrown into a world of darkness.’

But he vowed he would not cave in.

Close to tears, he said: ‘When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I see is darkness. It’s not very nice.

‘I either pull my socks up and get on with the day or I shrink and sit in front of the television or sit and listen to the radio.

‘I’m not prepared to do that.’

He said he was lucky to survive being shot twice by Moat.

‘He was not good enough to kill me on the night, he’s not going to kill me further on in my life.

‘I’m lucky. I take each day as a bonus.’

He added he is determined to return to work to complete the shift he started the day he was horrifically wounded

Pc Rathband said: ‘I am determined that I will go back and I will wear my uniform.

‘I want to book off duty. I didn’t finish my shift.’

Sounding close to tears, he told presenter Victoria Derbyshire he feels he “needs” to return, saying: “When you go on duty you book on. And I didn’t book off, and I need to finish what I started, mentally, for me.”